"- totally useless information" Bo hissed, with a slight touch of guilt and an awful lot of gratitude.
The Wendigo's snapping jaws could shear off her fingers if she judged it wrong, but she didn't have any other choice. It swung its head down for the killing blow, and right as it did, she drove the ball of her hand into its chin with industrial force. It recoiled, just long enough to let her seize its snout and force those horrid jaws shut. The thing shook its head feebly, but her grip was strong, and thanks to the drugs, it wasn't co-ordinated enough to be effective.
Fuck it, she thought, here goes.
She pistoned herself upwards as much as the Wendigo's weakened grip allowed, and drew a stream of bright blue chi from its lipless mouth. It was a strange and unfamiliar taste, one that she would be in no hurry to try again, but it had the intended effect. The thing stopped struggling instantly and its hold on her loosened. It shuddered, and Bo realised that its whole huge frame was about to collapse right on her. She frantically dragged herself out from its grip, and broke the stream. The Wendigo made a baleful moaning sound, and wobbled unsteadily in place, struggling feebly to base itself again.
Before it could even try launching another assault, Bo found the rifle. She gripped it by the barrel, and drove the heavy stock directly into the thing's awful, gaunt face. The blow landed with exquisitely satisfying force, and the monster dropped like a discarded puppet. It crumpled into a bundle of angular limbs, and this time, at last, it didn't get back up. Bo waited until the yellow light in its eyes faded to a dull glow and then, and only then, breathed a sigh of relief.
She tossed the crooked remains of the Ash's fancy ass custom rifle into the thick snow with a note of finality. She turned to find Lauren had already emerged from wherever she'd gone to ground, and was pulling open her kit bag.
"That gun cost thirty five thousand dollars from R&D to construction, you know," she said with a wry smile.
"Well, you tell the Ash that if he can find thirty five thousand dollars anywhere in my diverse and extensive portfolio, he's more than welcome to it."
Lauren replied only with a knowing shake of her head. The storm seemed to be easing off already.